The Other Art Fair returns with an aim to make art exactly that: fair

The UK's largest artist-led independent contemporary art fair returns to Sydney for its second democratic outing

Building 3 by Mark Collis, one of the artists pre-selected to exhibit at The Other Art FairCredit: Supplied

In a world of gargantuan Art Basels and week-long Friezes where the biggest names in art vie for attention from even bigger dealers and galleries, it’s nice to know that there exists a space where the unrepresented can commingle and exhibit with the intention of making an art fair just that: fair.

The Other Art Fair, the UK’s largest artist-led contemporary fair, has announced that it will make its return to Sydney after a successful inaugural outing in 2015. Operating over three days from its new home in Sydney’s COMMUNE Collaborative Warehouse in Waterloo, The Other Art Fair will embark on its sophomore outing from October 27 underpinned by the democratic ethos that an art fair should be a less exclusive experience for artists and collectors alike. First established in November 2011, the event has come to establish a reputation as one of London’s leading alternative arts events through its championing of up and coming artists who continue to practice despite being unrepresented by galleries.

Come October, 100 artists will have been chosen to participate by a committee of esteemed experts from the various fields of contemporary art, including RoslynOxley9 gallerist Roslyn Oxley, artists Ben Quilty and Leif Podhajsky and consultant Amanda Love. Artists representing a variety of disciplines selected to participate thus far include Celeste Wrona, Joe Helmore, Mark Collis (whose work is pictured above), Sarah Beetson, Chrysa Koukoura, Martine Vanderspuy and Kirsten Jackson.

In a surprising new plot twist, Sydney-based tattoo artist Rhys Gordon of Justin Bieber endorsed Bondi tattoo emporium Little Tokyo will collaborate with an as-yet unannounced artist on a competition that will see four winners have an original artwork drawn by the guest artist tattooed onto them. It’s an idea redolent of Scott Campbell’s recent Whole Glory project, though decidedly less riskier, and it purports to further interrogate ideas of “permanence, value and ownership of contemporary art”.